The origins of the French Press are slightly tough to trace back, but it seems to have originated in Italy, or it could have been France. We aren’t really sure. The design, in its simplest form, started as a cheesecloth or metal screen attached to a rod and plunged down into a pot of boiling water and coarsely ground coffee. In 1929, a Milanese designer, named Attilio Calimani patented the design and thanks to him, we have the modern day French press.
French press, or plunger coffee, as known in some countries, is a great method as it is very hands off and also incredibly forgiving. It is by far the simplest method of brewing, and that simplicity is what makes it so great.
WHAT YOU WILL NEED:
RINSE AND HEAT
Pour hot water into the press and rinse out any residual coffee and to heat the vessel.
MEASURE AND GRIND
Measure out 24g of coffee and grind on a coarse setting. The grinds should resemble coarse sea salt. Add all the grinds to the press and zero out your scale.
BLOOM AND BREW
Start by saturating the coffee (about 75g coffee) and let it set for 30 seconds to bloom. You should see bubbles coming out of this grinds, this is the part where the coffee starts releasing gases and hence, it’s most exquisite flavors. After 30 seconds, pour water over the coffee in a circular motion until you reach 384g of water.
STIR AND WAIT
Give your coffee a few good stirs with your brew paddle then set the lid on top of the press with the plunger resting just above the liquid. Then set your timer for 3:30 and practice patience.
PLUNGE
After your timer goes off (the total time for this brew method is still 4 minutes) slowly plunge down. Let the grinds settle at the bottom of the coffee for another 15 or so seconds.
POUR AND SERVE
Pour into a heated coffee mug and serve, but make sure not to drink the last sip because it will definitely have some coffee sediments!